Underground trolley system



. (N0 Model O. E. HUBBS.

UNDERGROUND TROLLEY SYSTEM.

No. 549,920. Patented Nov. 19, 189.5.-

ANDREW EGRAKAM PHUTO-LITNO.WASNINGTUN.D.C..

' UNITED STAT S PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLIE E. HUBBS, OF STREATOR, ILLINOIS.

UNDERGROUND TROLLEY SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 549,920, dated November19, 1895. Application filed May 23, 1895. Serial No. 550,403. (Nomodel.)

T0 at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLIE E. HUBBs,a citizen of the United States,residing at Streator, in the county of La Salle and State of Illinois,have invented a new and useful Underground Trolley System, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to electric street-railways, and particularly to atrolley system adapted to be arranged below grade or below the plane ofthe track-rails.

The objects in View are to provide a simple and efficient constructionand arrangement of parts whereby a conductor of large cross-sectionalarea may be employed, to provide simple and efficient means forinsulating the con ductor to prevent leakage, to provide means forsupporting the conductor out of the path of rain and snow admittedthrough the slot, and, furthermore, to provide efficient means foroperating the trolley-pole.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in thefollowing description,and the novel features thereof will beparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings,Figure 1 is a transverse section of a road-bedconstructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a detail view inperspective of one of the castings which combine to form the conduit.Fig. 3 is a detail View of the joint between the ends of two connectedsections of the conductor. Fig. 4 is a side View of the means foroperating the trolley pole or arm, a portion of the road-bed being shownin section to indicate the manner of mounting the trolley-wheel. Fig. 5is a detail view of the means for guiding the trolley arm.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawlngs.

Arranged upon horizontal transverse ties 1 is a cement bed 2, the centerof which is depressed to form a drain-basin3, which communicates bymeans of suitable piping 4 with a sewer (not shown) whereby waterentering the conduit is carried off and prevented from accumulatingtherein. Resting upon the cement bed 2 are transversely-oppositecastings 5 and 6, provided at their outer ends with ears '7, which arebolted to the webs 8 of. the rails 9, said rails having their basesresting upon the upper surface of the cement bed. These 7 castingscomprise horizontal bases 10,webs 11, and concave fianges'12, theflanges 12 of the opposite castings having their concave faces arrangedto connect with or merge into the concave surface of the basin 3. Thelateral ears 13, which are flush with the upper edges of the webs of thecastings, support roadplates 14 and 15, which are bolted thereto, theplates 14, which are arranged upon one side of the slot 16, beingprovided at intervals with hinged sections 17, whereby access to theinterior of the conduit may be had for the purpose of repairing theconductor or cleaning the conduit. The casting 5 comprises a main orbody portion or section and a removable or auxiliary section 18, thecontiguous ends of said main'and auxiliary sections being provided withcars 19, connected together by bolts 20, and in the contiguous edges ofthe main and auxiliary sections is formed a seat 21 for the conductor22, said conductor corresponding approximately in cross section with a Trail and having a flanged base 23, a web 24, and a tread or head 25,

the latter being preferably of copper. Interposed between the base ofthis conductor, which is arranged in the upwardly-flared or dovetailedseat 21, and the seat is an insulator 26, preferably formed of glass.The slot 16, being formed between the outer extremity of the auxiliarysection 18 and the contiguous end of the casting 6, is removedlaterally'from the plane of the conductor a distance .sufiicient toprevent water entering the slot from coming in contact with theconductor, and also toprevent objects inserted through the slot from theexterior from touching the same. The lower or free edges of theinsulator 26 are flared outwardly toward their lower extremities, asshown at 27, to act as guards, and the auxiliary section 18 of thecasting 5 is provided between its inner extremity and the seat 21 with adepending drippoint 28 to prevent water running down the face of thecasting from passing inward beyond said point.

The trolley-arm 29 extends vertically downward into the conduit and isprovided with a horizontal extension 30, terminating in upstanding ears31, in which are mounted the trunnions of the trolley-wheel 32. Saidtrun- ICO nions are mounted in bearin g-blocks 33,which are fitted toslide in vertical slots 34: in the ears, tension-springs 35 beinemployed to cause the wheel to follow any irregularities of theconductors without jarring or straining the trolley-arm. The conductoris preferably formed in sections provided with halved or rabbetedextremities, as shown at 36, said ends being preferably soldered andriveted together.

The trolley-arm is provided with a rack 37 and is fitted in a guide 38,having a removable face-plate 39, said face-plate being held in place bymeans of keyhole slots 40 formed therein engaging headed studs 41 at thesides of the guide. Engaging said rack is a pinion 42, to which aresecured sprocket-wheels i3, engaged by endless chains ll. By means ofthese chains motion may be communicated in either direction to thetrolley-arm by means of the operating spindles 15.

From the above description it will be seen that aheavy conductor may beemployed, and that when arranged in the seats provided for its receptionin the conduit it is protected from contact with foreign substancesintroduced through the slot. It will be seen, furthermore, that anydesired section of the conductor may be removed and replaced whennecessary, and that the mounting of the 0011- duetor in the seats isfacilitated by the removable section of the casting, between which andthe main section of the casting the seat is formed.

The hinged portion 17 of the road-plate rests upon the castings, and theconductor is supported solely by the castings. The hinged sections 17are preferably arranged eontiguous to every other or alternate castings,and in practice the insulating material maybe arranged upon thealternate or intermediate castings.

The feed-wire 40 is arranged in the aligned openings of the castings 11at one side of the conduit, and the return-wire 47 is arranged in thealigned openings of the other casting, and the return-wire should betapped to the rail at intervals corresponding with those at which thefeed-wire is tapped to the conductor or trolley-wire. Said feed andreturn-wires are insulated throughout and are supported by pins 48,having suitable insulating-seats 49, through which the wires extend.

In practice various changes in the form, proportion, and the minordetails of construction may be resorted to without departing from thespirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim is- 1. A conduit forunderground trolley systems, having transverse ties, a cement bedsupported by the ties and having a centrally depressed drain-basinconnected with a drainpipe, sets of opposite castings cut away at theirinner ends above said basin and terminating contiguous to each other toform a slot,

track rails seated upon said cement bed near itslateral edges andcoi'inecting the outer extremities of the castings in series,road-plates resting upon the upper edges of the castings between thevertical planes of the track rails, and a conductor supported by thecastings upon one side of the slot and within the space between thecut-away inner ends of the castings, substantially as specified.

2. A conduit for underground trolley sys tems, having a horizontal bedand a centrally depressed drain-basin, sets of opposite castings seatedupon said bed and cut away at their inner ends to form an interveningspace above the basin, the upper edges of the castings terminatingcontiguous to each other above said space to form a continuous slot,road-plates supported by the castings, track rails connecting the outerends of the castin gs and extending from the road-bed to the lower edgesof the castings, a conductor arranged in. the space between the cut-awayends of the castings out of the vertical plane of the slot, and feedersarranged in horizontally registering openings formed in the c: stingsbetween the cut-away inner ends and the planes of the track rails,substantially as specified.

A conduit for electric railways formed by the combination of sets ofopposite eastings connected by track rails bolted to their outerextremities and separated at their in ner ends to form a continuous slotfor a trolley arm, road-plates bolted to the upper edges of the eastings, said plates being provided at intervals with hinged sections toprovide access to the conduit, and seats being formed in the castingsout of the vertical plane of the slot and beneath said hinged sectionsof the roadplates, and conductors arranged in said seats, substantiallyas specified.

i. A conduit for electric railways comprisin g a chamber and a slotcommunieatin g with the chamber, a conductor arranged in the upperportion of the chamber at one side of the plane of the slot, an arm inelectrical contact with the motor 01": a car and extending through theslot into the chamber, said arm being provided with current transmittingmeans for contact with the conductor, a guide for said arm having anopen side through which the arm maybe inserted and removed, a removablefaceplate covering the open side of the guide and provided with.elongated slots engaging headed studs on the guide, and means forcommunicating motion to the arm to arrange the current-transmittingdevices in or out of contact with the conductor, substantially asspecified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoin as my own I have hereto a'liixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLIE E. IIUBBS. \Vitnesses:

W. II. RvoN, 1-1. G. YOUNG.

